Yahoo Finance Here's Why We're Wary Of Buying Richardson Electronics' (NASDAQ:RELL) For Its Upcoming Dividend
Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you're one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that Richardson Electronics, Ltd. (NASDAQ:RELL) is about to go ex-dividend in just four days. You can purchase shares before the 5th of August in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 27th of August.
Richardson Electronics's next dividend payment will be US$0.06 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$0.24 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Richardson Electronics has a trailing yield of 5.4% on the current share price of $4.48. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Richardson Electronics's dividend is reliable and sustainable. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.
View our latest analysis for Richardson Electronics
If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Richardson Electronics paid a dividend last year despite being unprofitable. This might be a one-off event, but it's not a sustainable state of affairs in the long run. With the recent loss, it's important to check if the business generated enough cash to pay its dividend. If cash earnings don't cover the dividend, the company would have to pay dividends out of cash in the bank, or by borrowing money, neither of which is long-term sustainable. It paid out an unsustainably high 2,110% of its free cash flow as dividends over the past 12 months, which is worrying. Unless there were something in the business we're not grasping, this could signal a risk that the dividend may have to be cut in the future.
Click here to see how much of its profit Richardson Electronics paid out over the last 12 months.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Stocks in companies that generate sustainable earnings growth often make the best dividend prospects, as it is easier to lift the dividend when earnings are rising. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. Richardson Electronics reported a loss last year, but at least the general trend suggests its income has been improving over the past five years. Even so, an unprofitable company whose business does not quickly recover is usually not a good candidate for dividend investors.
The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Richardson Electronics has delivered an average of 12% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past 10 years of dividend payments. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.
We update our analysis on Richardson Electronics every 24 hours, so you can always get the latest insights on its financial health, here.
Final Takeaway
Is Richardson Electronics worth buying for its dividend? It's hard to get used to Richardson Electronics paying a dividend despite reporting a loss over the past year. Worse, the dividend was not well covered by cash flow. It's not the most attractive proposition from a dividend perspective, and we'd probably give this one a miss for now.
So if you're still interested in Richardson Electronics despite it's poor dividend qualities, you should be well informed on some of the risks facing this stock. For example, we've found 2 warning signs for Richardson Electronics that we recommend you consider before investing in the business.
If you're in the market for dividend stocks, we recommend checking our list of top dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
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